Size limits

Google forms

Size limits also apply to spreadsheets that collect form responses (for example, if you send a survey). The number of questions in your form and the number of cells with other data count toward your limit.

Complex calculations

Google spreadsheets have complexity limits. Every time a cell is updated, any cell that references it is recalculated. If formulas become too complex or take too long to calculate, the spreadsheet will timeout during calculation.

Formulas that increase the complexity of a spreadsheet include:

VLOOKUP, QUERY, SUMIF, and similar formulas that take a large range of cells as input.

Volatile formulas (for example, NOW, RAND, OFFSET, INDIRECT) are recalculated every time the spreadsheet is modified. If there are a large number of formulas that depend on cells with volatile formulas, they will be recalculated on each edit, which may slow down a spreadsheet.

You’ll see a warning message if a spreadsheet is becoming too complex. This warning means that formulas may start to display errors or take a long time to calculate if you make your spreadsheet more complex. To remove this warning, reduce complexity in the spreadsheet using the tips below.

Reduce complexity

To reduce complexity in a spreadsheet:

Break up a large spreadsheet into different smaller spreadsheets.

Minimize the number of complex formulas. See the list above for functions that increase complexity.

After getting data points through any complex formula, copy and paste them as "values only."